The Saudis have allowed foreigners to own real estate

05.02.2011 16:36

We are talking about foreign nationals who live and work in the kingdom. However, one expert believes that this measure will not help to "revive" the Saudi real estate market.

According to the chief economist at Bank Banque Saudi Fransi John Sfakianikisa, "an initiative of the authorities is unlikely to have significant effect, since the majority of expatriates working in Saudi Arabia - is the power of low-skilled workers with low wages, which does not allow them to acquire real estate in the kingdom. If even the locals can not find affordable housing, these workers are not able to do so and even more so. "

The representative of a large real estate agency Cluttons Stephen Birch believes that the resolution to buy real estate in Saudi Arabia will be interesting for foreign investors wishing to purchase office buildings and retail properties.

According to research company RNCOS, less than 35% of the inhabitants of the kingdom owned your own home, reports the International Business Times. To help remedy the situation could mortgage, but at present the share of mortgage loans account for about 41% of monthly income of the average buyer. Estimated Deutsche Bank, is now less than 1% of all purchases of housing financed through a mortgage (for comparison: in the U.S. the figure is 66%).

Recall that in the Kingdom is the enactment of the mortgage. The company's specialists Capitas Group International believes that through this volume of the mortgage market in Saudi Arabia will reach $ 32 billion a year.